Ilz (Steiermark)

ILZ

State : Steiermark
District : Hartberg-Fürstenfeld (until 2015 Fürstenfeld)

Origin/meaning

The arms were granted by Hofpfalzgraf Wolfgang von Khaltenhausen zu Greiffenstain on January 13, 1628 at Graz.

The blazon is very detailed, but offers no explanations. Ilz has been a crossroads for a very long time and thrived on local trade. The bridge may represent the Ilzbach, a brook.

The arms of Ilz are a singular instance in that they were not granted by the Landesfürst, the Duke of Styria, but by a deputy. Hofpfalzgraf (Comes Palatinus) was a special nobility of office in the Holy Roman Empire, comparatively rarely created, its bearer being vested with some of the Imperial Prerogatives, among others the granting of arms and the power of nobilitation.